• 💡 "You can certainly try": Encourages players to be creative and take risks, reminding them of the limitless possibilities in the game and the potential consequences of their actions.
• 💡 "What you don't see is": Adds suspense and mystery by providing players with information their characters are unaware of, enhancing immersion for those who enjoy role-playing and can separate player knowledge from character actions.
• 💡 "How does your player feel in this situation?": Puts the spotlight on individual players, allowing them to explore their characters' motivations and backstory, while also engaging players who may not have had much to do recently.
• 💡 "How do you want to do this?": Celebratory phrase marking the defeat of a significant enemy, giving players the opportunity to describe their character's finishing blow and fostering collaboration between DM and players in shaping the narrative.
• 💡 "What does it look like when you do this?": Encourages players to visualize and describe the visual aspects of their character's spells or actions, promoting player immersion and creativity, while also enhancing the overall atmosphere at the table.

• ✏️ Mistake 1: New DMs often make the mistake of planning an epic game with grand plots and expectations. It's recommended to start with more modest plots and expectations, focusing on basic elements and getting comfortable with the rules and mechanics.
• 📚 Mistake 2: Using pre-published modules is a great option for new DMs. They provide guidance on writing descriptions, creating stat blocks, pacing, and balancing encounters. Modules like the Starter Set's "Lost Mines of Phandelver" and Goodman Games' "Into the Borderlands" are highly recommended.
• 🏰 Mistake 3: Dungeons are recommended for new DMs because they provide a closed circuit and limit player options. Wilderness settings can be overwhelming as players have more freedom to do anything.
• ⚔️ Mistake 4: Starting with first-level characters is advised for new DMs. Beginning at a higher level with powerful spells and abilities can be overwhelming. It's important to ease into the game and learn the mechanics before handling more complex elements.
• 📺 Mistake 5: Planning a mini-series of four or five sessions is preferable to planning a long campaign. Most D&D campaigns end before reaching high levels, so it's better to have a concise and satisfying conclusion within a shorter time frame. The DM can decide whether to continue the series based on the players' feedback.
• 📜 Mistake 6: New DMs often struggle with understanding story construction. The two essential elements are characters (brought by players) and conflict (brought by the DM). A conflict consists of an objective and a time limit for achieving it, which creates a narrative drive and engages players.
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Mistake 7: Having too many players can be challenging for a new DM. It's recommended to restrict the number of participants, with three players being the ideal number. This allows for a cohesive group dynamic and quick turns, preventing long waits between player actions.
• 📖 Mistake 8: New DMs often attempt to use all the optional rules in D&D 5th Edition. It's advised to stick to the basic rules, especially for beginner DMs, to simplify the game and reduce decision overload.
• 🎭 Mistake 9: Avoid comparing oneself to famous celebrity DMs like Matt Mercer or Chris Perkins. Each DM has their own style, and it's important to focus on having fun and enjoying the game. Playing with new players who have no expectations can be a great experience.

• 😄 Make every combat unique and special by creating interesting situations and timers.
• 🎥 Take inspiration from film director Francis Ford Coppola and aim to create memorable and unique combat encounters.
• 🗝️ Design rooms and encounters that stand out from the typical expectations, adding elements like scorpion fights, hostages, or unique environmental features.
• ⏱️ Incorporate timers and time limits into combat encounters to increase tension and create memorable moments.
• 🎮 Learn from board games like Terraforming Mars and Dead of Winter that use time limits and resource management to enhance excitement and pacing.
• 💥 Consider adding time limits to boss encounters or introducing time-sensitive elements to regular combat to make them more engaging.
• 🤔 Reflect on hit points as both a measure of health and a timer, and consider reducinghit points to increase tension and make combat more exciting.
• 🌉 Utilize environmental features like narrow bridges, sinking ships, or burning rooms to create dynamic combat situations.
• 🔀 Grids are optional, and using zone terrain instead can provide a more fluid combat experience.
• ⏰ Group initiative can work well for larger groups, where players declare their actions before rolling for resolution, creating a more realistic and chaotic feel.
• 🎲 Combat tactics can be influenced by the chosen initiative method, and different approaches can be valid depending on personal preferences and playstyle.
• 💡 Thinking of combat in terms of situations and imposing time limits can make combat exciting regardless of the game system, level, or genre.
• 📚 There are additional resources available in the description of the video, including a Dungeon Craft Facebook group and Patreon page.

• 💡 Reason 1: Your children don't want to be responsible for your stuff after you die. Start decluttering now to spare them the overwhelming task.
• 💡 Reason 2: Minimizing while you're still capable allows you to maintain control over what happens to your items. Waiting until later means others will make decisions for you.
• 💡 Reason 3: Having fewer possessions makes everyday life easier and more streamlined. It reduces the burden of cleaning, organizing, and maintaining your belongings, saving you time, money, and stress.

"You're attacked by a group of goblins, they are gouging your eyes, biting your ears and dropping scorpions down your plate mail"

WorkingStiff Diogenes
1 hour ago
Two thoughts:
We used to have a home-brew that replaced d20 with a d12 and d8. You totaled them to get your score, but also the d12 determined hit location (12 was head, 6 was right arm, etc.) The d8 determined effects as well as points of damage. For example an 8 was severed. So a roll of 12+8 was 20 points but also a total decapitation--a guaranteed kill.
My current home-brew uses 2d6 vs. target number. There is no roll for damage--the losing side takes the difference in damage. That makes a less swingy system better. Also, 2d6 has a visceral quality--snake eyes just feel terrible and double sixes feel victorious. Advantage for the DM is that in a 2d6 system, a score of 7 is the mean, the median and the mode--very "stable." So to create a suitably-powered enemy, the GM just takes the PC's bonuses and adds 7; that's the target number of the monster.

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• 📚 The speaker recently obtained the physical version of Advanced Tiny Dungeon, which was difficult to find in Europe.
• 🎲 The main difference between Advanced Tiny Dungeon and regular Tiny Dungeon is the introduction of an armor class (AC) system in combat.
• 🎯 In regular Tiny Dungeon, players need to roll a 5 or higher to damage opponents, regardless of armor or speed. Advanced Tiny Dungeon allows for lower AC targets, making combat more balanced.
• ⚔️ In Advanced Tiny Dungeon, every successful die roll inflicts one point of damage, or two points for heavy melee weapons. This provides a clearer and more intuitive damage system.
• 🎭 Advanced Tiny Dungeon introduces a class structure where players choose two specialties to determine their class. Classes include Archer, Explorer, Fighter, Mage, Paladin, Thief, and more.
• 📜 The system allows for renaming classes to suit individual preferences or character concepts.
• 🧬 Heritages are still present in Advanced Tiny Dungeon, defining hit points (HP) and armor class (AC). The maximum AC allowed is 5, regardless of combinations or abilities.
• 💔 Instead of hit points, Advanced Tiny Dungeon uses a combination of trauma and stress to represent physical and mental damage.
• 🔀 Optional rules in the book cover various aspects, such as critical hits, character drawbacks, XP methods, item usage, repairs, and setting up camps.
• 📖 The speaker personally finds the Advanced Tiny Dungeon system worth having, especially for playing with their son or solo gaming. They appreciate the simplicity and ease of play, as well as the versatility to merge with other systems.

• 🎲 A game master is not just a storyteller; they are conflict designers in tabletop role-playing games.
• 🎲 In tabletop role-playing games, the game master designs the conflicts, players decide how to approach them, and dice determine the outcomes.
• 🎲 Railroading, or forcing players down a preconceived path, should be avoided in favor of allowing player autonomy and choices.
• 🎲 Dice rolls ultimately determine success or failure in tabletop role-playing games, and respecting the randomness of the dice is important.
• 🎲 Game masters can't plan too far in advance because they don't know if the players will live or die, so they focus on designing the next session.
• 🎲 The veiled society campaign is based on the classic module "The Veiled Society" by Zeb Cook, set in a city with warring merchant families and a murder mystery.
• 🎲 The campaign is designed to have lots of conflicts between factions, and the player characters interject themselves into these conflicts.
• 🎲 The professor uses a random urban scenario generator to create conflict for each session, providing object, antagonist, location, time limit, and reward.
• 🎲 The professor presents players with two potential missions and they choose which one to pursue, giving the campaign a sandbox feel.
• 🎲 The professor focuses on designing unique encounters and locations, not worrying too much about what will happen in future sessions.
• 🎲 The scenarios may have similarities to other stories (e.g., Batman movies or Star Wars), but the players' approach and decisions make them compelling.
• 🎲 The amount of prep time doesn't necessarily correlate with the level of fun the players will have; sometimes, quick scenarios turn out to be the most enjoyable.
• 🎲 The professor encourages viewers to roll out scenarios using the random urban scenario generator and share their experiences.
• 🎲 Links are provided to the Dungeoncraft Facebook group, Patreon, extended video version, and the professor's module "Macdet."

Performing actions involves time, gear, and skill.

Generally, if you have none or one of the three, a task is impossible.
If you have all three, you do not need to roll – it just succeeds.
If you only have two, the task might involve a Save, with time or your gear being at stake if you fail.
Environmental factors/opportunities might act as a substitute for gear or skill.

Example: Lockpicking
Lockpicking a door requires no roll if you are skilled at lockpicking, are not in a hurry and have lockpicking tools available.

Lockpicking a door might require a DEX Save if you’re in a hurry yet have the skills and tools, with the risk being not finishing the task in time. It could also involve a WIL Save if you have time and skill, yet no tools, with you trying to improvise your tools.

Lockpicking a door is impossible with only one of the three:

You could stare at a lock all day with all the time in the world, but without gear and skill, nothing is going to happen.
You could be a skilled lockpicker, but in a hurry and without tools, there’s not much you can do.
You might have lockpick tools, but without the time to figure out how to use them, there’s no way you’ll manage it without skill.